Peroxiredoxin1, a novel regulator of pronephros development, influences retinoic acid and Wnt signaling by controlling ROS levels.

Peroxiredoxin1 (Prdx1) is an antioxidant enzyme belonging to the peroxiredoxin family of proteins. Prdx1 catalyzes the reduction of HO and alkyl hydroperoxide and plays an important role in different biological processes. Prdx1 also participates in various age-related diseases and cancers.

Generation and characterization of mouse knockout for glyoxalase 1.

Glyoxalase 1 (Glo1) is the first enzyme involved in glutathione-dependent detoxification of methylglyoxal, eventually generating d-lactate by the second enzyme glyoxalase 2 (Glo2). An accumulation of intracellular glyoxal and methylglyoxal leads to protein malfunction and mutation via formation of the advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Studies on mouse behavior suggest that methylglyoxal has anxiolytic properties.

Nonviral Genome Editing Based on a Polymer-Derivatized CRISPR Nanocomplex for Targeting Bacterial Pathogens and Antibiotic Resistance.

The overuse of antibiotics plays a major role in the emergence and spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria. A molecularly targeted, specific treatment method for bacterial pathogens can prevent this problem by reducing the selective pressure during microbial growth. Herein, we introduce a nonviral treatment strategy delivering genome editing material for targeting antibacterial resistance.

Analysis of Fixed-Dose Combination Products Approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, 2010-2015: Implications for Designing a Regulatory Shortcut to New Drug Application.

Background: Fixed-dose combination (FDC) drugs have been an attractive product in pharmaceutical markets because of their unique advantages, but general guidance directing the clinical development of FDC drugs is not yet available in the US.

Method: All drug approval reports of FDC products approved by the US FDA from January 2010 to December 2015 were intensively analyzed to investigate the regulatory requirements of the US FDA.

Result: Through analyzing 63 approved FDCs out of 655 New Drug Application (NDA) approvals, it was found that completion of the full phases of clinical trials was not always required for approval by the FDA, which indicates that some phases of clinical studies can be possibly exempted, if justified.

Stereospecific mechanism of DJ-1 glyoxalases inferred from their hemithioacetal-containing crystal structures.

Unlabelled: DJ-1 family proteins have recently been characterized as novel glyoxalases, although their cofactor-free catalytic mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we obtained crystals of Arabidopsis thaliana DJ-1d (atDJ-1d) and Homo sapiens DJ-1 (hDJ-1) covalently bound to glyoxylate, an analog of methylglyoxal, forming a hemithioacetal that presumably mimics an intermediate structure in catalysis of methylglyoxal to lactate. The deuteration level of lactate supported the proton transfer mechanism in the enzyme reaction.

Novel glyoxalases from Arabidopsis thaliana.

We examined six Arabidopsis thaliana genes from the DJ-1/PfpI superfamily for similarity to the recently characterized bacterial and animal glyoxalases. Based on their sequence similarities, the six genes were classified into two sub-groups consisting of homologs of the human DJ-1 gene and the PH1704 gene of Pyrococcus horikoshii. Unlike the homologs from other species, all the A.

Human DJ-1 and its homologs are novel glyoxalases.

Human DJ-1 is a genetic cause of early-onset Parkinson's disease (PD), although its biochemical function is unknown. We report here that human DJ-1 and its homologs of the mouse and Caenorhabditis elegans are novel types of glyoxalase, converting glyoxal or methylglyoxal to glycolic or lactic acid, respectively, in the absence of glutathione. Purified DJ-1 proteins exhibit typical Michaelis-Menten kinetics, which were abolished completely in the mutants of essential catalytic residues, consisting of cysteine and glutamic acid.

[Clinical outcomes of lamivudine therapy and HLA alleles in chronic hepatitis B patients].

Background/aims: The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system is an integral component of immune response. Highly polymorphic HLA genes may play a pivotal role in the response of antiviral therapy. We investigated the effects of HLA gene polymorphism on the clinical outcome of chronic hepatitis B patients who received lamivudine treatment.

The development of a new training system for improving equilibrium sense using a virtual bicycle simulator.

In this paper, a new rehabilitation training system was developed to improve equilibrium sense control by combining virtual reality technology with a fixed exercise bicycle. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the training system, twenty normal healthy adults participated as test subjects in the investigation of the influence of different the parameters on equilibrium sensory control. Several factors including path deviation, cycling time, cycling velocity, center of pressure were evaluated and analyzed quantitatively.